The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1887-04-07
A DEATH BROKER.
BUSINESS WHICH REVERSES THE
OPERATIONS OF LIFE INSURANCE.

| Making Post Obit Investments, as They
Arc CalIed--I;uyinG Legacics OF People
| With Expectations-Benefits and Losses
! of the Business.
| 1t was in a real ests5s broker, Office on
! Court street, and tho time after dinner.
! TAo broker had just disposed of a big brick
swell front house OIL Commonwealth! avenue
with Us nluc.! ease AMI as little difficulty Is
ycu could sell Il pint Of peanuts at cattle
far. lie was 4 man Of business, that broker
! was, and TO use all expression which he de
liThted in, he liked to see things so ut the
! first crack"
! I rather liked him, although I was not
! stuck" OH him. for I vas taught il ny earl
! ier ard Innocent days TO be cautious il Inv
dealings with the man who talked business as
! cold blooledly to me as an Anarchist hllrls a
! bomb at & car Of ali the RusSlas.
| "Hou buy legacies" l remarked Such
fiat, stale and unpToitabla remark, I
/ thought, beside the vigorous AMI prolonged
push which he gave to his alacvitous vocab-
! ul2ry.
Yes he replied Il mako aud nave male
great many contingent investIncnts-post
obit investments some call them. You will
perceive that my business is Il novel one, in
this country at least 1t is OF frequent occur
renee IN England for young man who las
been bequcathed q sum of money, or left
some real estate, to sell his right to such prop
erty, the buyer, of course, not realizing his
benefit until the death Of some guardian,
uncle, aunt or parent. OF course we take no
chances Oh simple wills of living persons, as
such persons may change their wills dozen
times before they go over the river. Where
wonld we be il we did? We'd be in the river,
and not a1oat, you bet.
BENEFITS OF THE BUSINESS.
"Lct ME give you an Illustration of tho
benefits Of this business. Only a few days
ago sailor chap steps in here. Says he, I've
just come ashore, having laid alongside che of
Uncle Sans guns for years | haven't a nick,
ye see, and chap as would like to go with me
to sec Jake Kilrain and Joo Lannon maui
each other give me the tip that sell what
right has in tho property left nc and me
brother by the old man. | can't get pick
until the ole woman dies, and although she's
near 80, shvcr me tinbers if IGcn't think it'll
be big break before she goes alOft. So, ye
see, goes to Me brother, and axes him what
he'll give me fur my share. He tells me that
my share amt worth a schooner of beer. I'm
disheartencd, dye see, until this chap as
wants to sec the fght-a fcller as reads, lie is,
though he does boozo-tclls me that you could
do me MP. Now, if ye can, and does, Pm no
tar if l don't drink yer health moro'n Wunst.
Ye see, capn, we want to get a peep at the
mauling.'
"Qucstioring the fellow further, I was
assured that his claim was solid, and l offered
him $500 for it ct the first crack. He went
away ard soon returned with the Information
that his brother had abandoned the schooner
of beer theory, and would give him 81 ,0G0 i'll
cold cash. went the brother $500 better,
however, and We closet the trade.
$50, you see, have rot as yet received g
copper in return for my expenditure, and
won't until the sailors mother died OF
course, the chances are against her living long
enough to euchre Inc out Of my investment.
You must remember there ere cases where
the principal and compound interest Of the
sum advanced may in time exceed tho sum
realized in the end. You SEQ, some old
women never die. What's to Kill them?
Having passed through all the critical stages
of womanhood, leading exemplary lives, re-
tiring early and not arising too early, drink
ing tea and eating toast, why shouldn't they
live long enough to bafllo mo! Some day
far away-they may dry up and blow off;
then | have show to make dollar
"I Ou see this business is the reverse of life
insurance. While tho life insurance man is
interested in the proiolgation OF human life,
the legacy buyer looks upon death as the
messenger who unlocks the safety deposit
vaults Of Dives, and makes the heart Of said
legacy buyer happy. Thus the dark pail be-
comes al immaculate wedding garment"
THE DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED.
He went on: "lll tel you another thing.
1t often happens that this contingent invest
ment business operates in favor Of the one
who takes the risk and the one who sells the
I
get the life Of tie man in question insured for
a sum equal to the expected legacy. So it
he dies before get my legacy, why l an
protected by the insurance. 1t has so hap
pene1 that | get my share all right, while tho
man who is insured, or his family, is not left
either.
''But do wish had those old ladies, good
souls, off my hands. I've got three of them
already, and may have more before winter
thaws out in the lap of spring. However, |
prefer them to some of the beats | come in
contact with. You can't imagine tho nuner
Gus forces against which I am obliged to
WORK sometimes. Dishonest legacy hunters,
INSCRIPTIONS trustees and such. There is
wide scope for a man who wants to be
crooked. Now, if buy legacy from a fel-
low there is nothing TO prevent him from
selling it again to some other man. The
vestnlcnt belongs to the first purchaser.
Therefore, if fellow comes in here to offer
me legacy for sale, how do l know that he
has not already sold it to somebody c!sei
"But you ought to see the array Of cranks
with whom | have to DEAL" he went on.
''Why, they come here from all parts, from
oil classes and conditions, imagining That they
have got some money tied up somewhere.
Why, had q woman come il here not long
ago who tod me that Jay Gould held $780,
Coz in trust for her, and that she would sell
it for two-thirds. OF course, che did not fool
me- Then a coiored woman, who claims 10
b, Queen of Africa, and who speaks of her
daughter as the princess, is a frequent caller.
She SAYS that she owns gold mine or that
she viii own one when her father who is !, 600
years old, dies She says the r'ine is in the
Congo country. l think it must exist in tho
great desert of Sahara; that is, in the only
oasis of her brain. Then there is Chinam1n
who wants to sell me his interest in q tea field
which he says is thirty miles outside OF
Canton. China His is q sad story. He de-
cIares that he was O merchant of respect and
prominencein in Canton, but, through q love IF
opium, neglected his business, which finally
fell into the hands OF creditors, with the ex
ception of G certain field which, by Mongo
Ian law as old as Confucius, still remains
his, but which he cannot dispose of while
living.